"Of all the unimportant things in the world, football is the most important"

Saturday, August 16, 2014

Premier league opening

With the usual World Cup hangover and a complicated situation in Monrovia, I have not had much time to dwell into the footballing pre-season. I recently met with a colleague and spent two hours talking about football, which was a wonderful escape from the disease that is otherwise the center of every conversation right now.
And the Premier league opening will help, at least me, in escaping the stress of the current situation.
The last two seasons have been incredible, with more amazing teams setting up to fight for the title:

Manchester City: The defending champions have not been looking strong in pre-season, with too many of their players injured or resting after the World Cup. This culminated in a 3-0 Charity Field defeat to Arsenal, and in their opening match against Newcastle they look to be missing many players. That said, Manchester City will likely be contenders for the title again. They have reinforced an already strong defense with Eliaquim Mangala, and as players get fit and into the season, will be moving up the table.

Arsenal: Arsenal fans are hungering for success, and the Charity field victory surely gives them hopes for this season. Further hopes are the purchase of Alexis Sanchez, the immensely talented Chilean, who will widen their attacking options. In fact, the challenge for Arsene Wenger will be to construct the optimal formation with a very deep squad. Arsenal are serious, and will be going for the title.

Liverpool: The loss of Luis Suarez has opened questions about the striking power of the Reds, in particular for a season where they will want to win the title after last season's "Almost". With the money from Suarez, Liverpool has been buying many players, most notably in Southampton. Rickie Lambert will be core in attack alongside Raheem Sterling, while Dejan Louvren is set to strengthen their defense. With the loss of Suarez, and having to incorporate new players, Liverpool may have less likelihood of being a title contender.

Manchester United: There are big hopes for the new coach Louis Van Gaal, who has had so much success everywhere he goes. There have only been two new signing though: Ander Herrera from Athletic Bilbao and Luke Shaw from Southampton. Players for the future, sure, but not really the signings that would give needed reinforcements for the defense. While all hope that Van Gaal can motivate Wayne Rooney and Robie Van Persie, alongside Juan Mata and Danny Welbeck, the weaknesses will be in the void left by Patrice Evra, Nemanja Vidic and Rio Ferdinand. Van Gaal and Manchester United will not be fighting for the title this season, but for a Champions League spot, and for building up a new team.

Chelsea: One thing is sure about Jose Mourinho's Chelsea: David Luiz' departure for Paris St. Germain made them richer and better. Chelsea is a serious title contender. Mourinho has brought in some strong players to build on what he already has. Felipe Luis has joined from Atletico Madrid, a player who was one of the world's best last season (and Brazil sorely missed in the World Cup), and will be a force alongside Branislav Ivanovic in defense. Cesc Fabregas has also joined the side, and the striking force will be interesting for sure, with Diego Costa and Didier Drogba joining. Costa is a player that may have disappointed with Spain, but his style fits perfectly into what Mourinho wants from a striker. With Drogba, we see the legend return to Chelsea: many will see it as a publicity stunt, but last season Mourinho managed to squeeze some great goals out of Samuel Eto'o. And that is a gift to all football fans.

Tottenham: Another new manager with Mauricio Pochettino. He remains a young manager who has never won anything, but he impressed the entire football world with what he did with Southampton last season, playing high pressure football and making a bunch of young promising players flourish. He will need the same qualities to motivate players who disappointed last season: Erik Lamela, Naser Chadli, Roberto Soldado, Emanuel Adebayor Paulinho and Mousa Dembele (Christian Eriksen was the only non-disappointment). It is certainly a promising side, but Pochettino is also still looking to reinforce it further with perhaps another striker (Jay Rodriguez seems to be in the pipeline). Be sure that Tottenham will be one of the most interesting teams to watch.

Everton: Everton finished fifth last season, and coach Jose Martinez has managed to keep on to his squad, most notably Ross Barkley and Romelu Lukaku, who completed his transfer from Chelsea. Both are young players who could have chose any clubs, but the fact that Everton managed to keep them points to the ambition to build up a stronger side that will qualify to the Champions League. Th

Stoke: I must admit that I know next to nothing about Stoke. However, one of the great things about the Premier League is that teams that are largely unknown can beat great sides, and that these small teams also have the capacity to buy great players. Bojan, the young Barcelona star that was hailed as one of the greatest a few years ago (at the tender age of 23 he has won two Champions League titles), is set to try to revive his career in Stoke.